Managing forests for wood yield and carbon storage: a theoretical study

Area of Science:

• Forestry science
• Ecosystem modeling
• Climate change mitigation

Background:

• Balancing timber production with carbon sequestration is crucial for sustainable forest management.
• Understanding the impact of different forest management regimes on carbon storage and timber yield is essential.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine optimal forest management strategies for maximizing both timber yield and carbon storage.
• To compare various harvesting intensities and frequencies against undisturbed forest conditions.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the Edinburgh Forest Model, a mechanistic simulator coupling carbon, nitrogen, and water cycles.
• Calibrated the model to a Scottish pine plantation and simulated scenarios including undisturbed forest, annual biomass removal (2.5-40%), periodic heavy thinning (50% every 20 years), and clear-felling (every 60 years).

Main Results:

• Undisturbed forests stored the most carbon (35.2 kg C m⁻²).
• Conventional plantation management yielded moderate carbon storage (14.3 kg C m⁻²) and timber yield (15.6 m³ ha⁻¹ year⁻¹).
• Annual removal of 10-20% woody biomass achieved high timber yield (25 m³ ha⁻¹ year⁻¹) and substantial carbon storage (20-24 kg C m⁻²).

Conclusions:

• No simple inverse relationship exists between timber harvested and carbon stored.
• Management regimes mimicking natural disturbances with continuous canopy cover can optimize timber yield and carbon storage.
• Specific annual thinning regimes show potential for dual objectives, attributed to enhanced light interception, productivity, and soil carbon accumulation.